1 Corinthians 10:23-11:1 (ESV)

²³ “All things are lawful,” but not all things are helpful. “All things are lawful ” but not all things build up. ²⁴ Let no one seek his own good, but the good of his neighbor. ²⁵ Eat whatever is sold in the meat market without raising any question on the ground of conscience. ²⁶ For “the earth is the Lord’s, and the fullness thereof.”

²⁷ If one of the unbelievers invites you to dinner and you are disposed to go, eat whatever is set before you without raising any question on the ground of conscience. ²⁸ But if someone says to you, “This has been offered in sacrifice,” then do not eat it, for the sake of the one who informed you, and for the sake of conscience—²⁹ I do not mean your conscience, but his. For why should my liberty be determined by someone else’s conscience? ³⁰ If I partake with thankfulness, why am I denounced because of that for which I give thanks?

³¹ So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God. ³² Give no offense to Jews or to Greeks or to the church of God, ³³ just as I try to please everyone in everything I do, not seeking my own advantage, but that of many, that they may be saved. ¹ Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ.

First Impressions:

What main ideas remain in your mind after hearing the text out loud?

It sounds like Paul is helping the Corinthians navigate social situations in which their faith impacts the way they interact with non-Christians and with their fellow believers. At first pass, it feels like direction to walk carefully, so as not to offend the non-believer or fellow Christian. It's remarkably practical advice for the early Christians, but it also isn't an overbearing and constrictive law. Paul doesn't give them new tablets to follow, instead he gives them himself as an example, as he follows Christ's example first and foremost.

What are the main images?

Mostly, this text has quite plain and lackluster images of a meat market and a dinner party. Simply doing eating what's in front of you, unless it would cause offense to others. Yet, these simple instances of Christian behavior are in light of the greatest image in this text: "the Earth is the Lord's", therefore follow the picture of living set out by Christ.

What life experiences does the text evoke for you?

My first thought went back to the lunch room in High School. How should I act as a "Christian kid"? As a teenager, I was already overly-concerned with how people viewed me, so being and acting like a Christian just added one more thing to the list of concerns.

That word "liberty" is also connecting to a lot of my life. I hear "liberty" brought up a lot an American. I can think of lots of times that I hear Christians talk about being free and "nobody can tell me to do anything." I too often have that gut impulse! I'm writing this on a distributed social media in part to have control and ownership of what I write, and maybe some "liberty" too?

What other scriptural passages come to mind?

Colossians 3:17, 23-24 - And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him... Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ.

• Very similar exhortation from Paul but to the Colossians

Luke 8:1-3 - Soon afterward he went on through cities and villages, proclaiming and bringing the good news of the kingdom of God. And the twelve were with him, and also some women who had been healed of evil spirits and infirmities: Mary, called Magdalene, from whom seven demons had gone out, and Joanna, the wife of Chuza, Herod’s household manager, and Susanna, and many others, who provided for them out of their means.

• The women who had been healed of different infirmities then "imitated Christ" as they followed him and gave of themselves and their means. It's the women who stay faithful through Jesus' death, even to go to Jesus' tomb with spices.

Matthew 22:17-21 - "Tell us, then, what you think. Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not?" But Jesus, aware of their malice, said, “Why put me to the test, you hypocrites? Show me the coin for the tax.” And they brought him a denarius. And Jesus said to them, “Whose likeness and inscription is this?" They said, “Caesar’s. ” Then he said to them, “Therefore render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s."

• This is also recorded in Mark and Luke. The practical-theological problem is phrased similarly (Is this practice lawful?) and the theological rationale is the same (all things belong to God)

What in this text connects directly to the people God has entrusted to your care?

Living a life of faith will often stir up complex theological problems out of even the most inane things like eating and drinking. We don't want to be paralyzed to live lives of faith, nor do we want to be Pharisaical or hypocritical.

My people have lives that God is using for his purposes. God will use even mundane things like meat markets and dinner parties as opportunities to bear witness. Notably, we don't bear witness to ourselves or our behavior, but to the gracious Christ who died and rose again (1 Cor 11:1).

Questions about the Text:

What ideas or images are hard to understand?

What is the theological issue in the first place? It's about meat being sacrificed to idols, but what are the historical nuances of this?

What is meant by conscience? How much weight do we put into our own consciences to be correct? When and how can we recognize that our consciences might actually be flawed?

What ideas are hard to put into practice?

"I try to please everyone in everything I do" (1 Cor 10:33). This feels like walking a tightrope. How can we live godly lives without being paralyzed by fear of making a mistake? Where's the grace here?

What cultural beliefs, habits, and values does the text contradict or challenge?

Liberty - What does it mean in terms of our American culture? What does it mean as a Christian? Is there overlap?

Neighbor - We often narrow that word down to those near us or like us. The Good Samaritan helps us in this point. In a digital age we have millions of neighbors online. What would it look like to seek their advantage? Is that too much? How can we narrow our focus?

Stewardship - This is in a series on stewardship. How do we use our lives well? What do we do or not do? What all do we need to consider when we think about stewardship? It's clearly more than our money (which is a point we hit home often). It's even more than our "time and talents," because I don't think "what you choose to eat at a friend's house" neatly fits into either of those categories either, and yet it's part of our life that we're stewarding!

What do you want to know about the text, its author, its setting? Why?

I'm a little confused by v. 29b and 30 and how they fit with the rest of the reading. They seem to me to be arguing the opposite point. Maybe they're points that the Corinthians raised and Paul is highlighting them to push against those ideas? Or maybe I'm misunderstanding how they connect.

Once again, the context of the specific theological issue is important to research. What are the societal nuances of eating or drinking that which has been sacrificed to idols?

I'd like to look up how Paul talks about "liberty" elsewhere. As well as "conscience" and "imitation." I'll do some word studies on these.

Is the "someone" in v. 28 a believer? Or unbeliever? Does it make a difference in how we understand Paul's direction?

Questions I have for the Reader (you!)

Answer in Leaflet comments or replies, or in the comment section on my social media post(s).

1. What is your main takeaway(s) from this text?

2. Do you think differences in belief cause much awkwardness or offense nowadays? If so, when? If not, why not?

3. Where's the line between (a) striving to imitate Christ and (b) worrying about every little action and what it means for your witness? Is there a line?

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